Drafting of rehabilitation programme for juvenile prisoners underway

Currently under design, a rehabilitation programme for prisoners under 21 years old, including for youths awaiting their sentence while in custody, will be launched. .

The Ministry for Home Affairs said in a statement that the programme’s curriculum will include both formal and informal education, as well as job training and sports.

It is being drafted by a group of experts in correctional services, forensic psychology, sports and criminology, including Kim Ehaugen – a Norwegian expert in the rehabilitation of young prisoners.

A separate training programme is also being drafted for prison officers who work with young prisoners.

“Educational activities are crucial for these youths, who are full of energy but who might not yet have had the opportunity to be taken care of and trained,” home affairs minister Carmelo Abela said during a visit to the curriculum’s designers at the Ta’ Kandja police academy. “If these youths are trained, then they will be able to contribute to the country and steer clear of criminality when they are let back into society.”

Currently, 11 inmates under 21 years old are being held at the Mtahleb complex for juvenile prisoners. All 11 of them are male and the youngest is 16 years old.